This invention relates to a water resistant cover for wheeled vehicles such as bicycles. The cover described in this invention may be modified to accommodate other wheeled vehicles such as mopeds, motorcycles, and the like. The cover of this invention not only provides a secure, water resistant, protective sack for the vehicle, but also is a vehicle protector that packs into itself and therefore does not require a separate pouch for storage.
Since many people such as students, young professionals and apartment dwellers find it increasingly desirable to use bicycles for recreation and commuting to work or school, a protected and secure environment is increasingly necessary to store bicycles on patios porches or terraces while protected against weather and vandalism.
The prior art describes a variety of covers to protect wheeled vehicles such as motorcycles or bicycles from the weather. For example, in British Pat. No. 480,382 dated Feb. 22, 1938, such a cover is described which fits over a motorcycle and is secured by elastic straps extending underneath the vehicle. In German Pat. No. 806,642 dated Jun. 14, 1951, a similar cover for a motorcycle is described with a hasp-type lock carried by the cover which will accommodate a padlock. The cover further includes a base however, and is clearly not portable. In German Pat. No. 950,059 dated Oct. 4, 1956, a similar motorcycle cover without the base is described. However, this cover utilizes diagonal drawstrings to tighten the cover about the motorcycle and therefore is not amenable to locking. In Norwegian Pat. No. 88,116 dated Aug. 4, 1956, a collapsible cover is described which will cover a bicycle and may be collapsed into a carrying case mounted on the cover. This cover also does not provide for securing the cover about the bicycle, or locking the cover to the bicycle. Finally in U.S. Pat. No. 4,356,831 there is described a U-Shaped protective collapsible bicycle cover with provision to lock the cover and bicycle to a stationary object, however, the provision to lock the bicycle is not impervious to the elements it is merely 4 holes that allow a chain to be threaded through. None of the art describes or suggests a cover that does not require a separate compartment for storage and a provision for preventing water or weather from reaching the bicycle through the openings which accommodate the locking mechanism and provisions to lock the cover to the frame of the vehicle when no stationary object is available.